Washed out Lions want Cats clash rescheduled

7 March 2010 — 8:33am

The Brisbane Lions will ask the AFL for special permission to play a practice match the week before the start of the season after yesterday's NAB Challenge Series match against Geelong was cancelled because of Melbourne's stormy weather.

A massive downpour engulfed Visy Park shortly before the scheduled 3pm start, with hailstones the size of golf balls landing on the playing surface.

Lightning was on the weather radar for what would have been the first half of the game and Lions coach Michael Voss and his Geelong counterpart Mark Thompson jointly agreed to cancel the match.

In an ironic twist, the game was only rescheduled to Melbourne at the last minute because of poor weather all week on the Gold Coast, where the match was supposed to be played.

Both clubs were yet to win in the pre-season and the Lions in particular were keen to focus on playing after a tumultuous week in which new full-forward Brendan Fevola was the centre of a controversy involving a nude photo of model, Lara Bingle.

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Both sides had named strong squads for the match.

The Lions play Hawthorn on the Gold Coast on Friday, but want to play another competitive match before their season opener against West Coast on 27 March.

"It was inconvenient and what we now need to do is see what we can get out of it," Voss said.

"Next week against Hawthorn is now critical and we have to look and see whether we can get an opponent for the following week or have an intra-club match so we can get the minutes into the players.

"The guys needed a freshen up this week so as it now stands, they really did get a freshen up. But everything we do now has to be spot on. The urgency goes up for us."

Voss said he expects to get special dispensation to play the week before the season, usually a mandated weekend off for players and coaches.

"It's fair to say we would be enormously stiff if we were denied that opportunity," he said.

"It would compromise quite severely our preparation for the season, because it's getting to the pointy end right now.

"I'd be staggered if we didn't get it particularly after this game was supposed to be in Queensland."

Thompson, who immediately sent his players out for a hard running session around the parkland surrounding Visy Park once the match was cancelled, is contemplating some sort of match practice on Monday, which is usually a recovery day for the side.

"It was frustrating because we would have preferred to play," Thompson said.

"Having a game is really important for your preparation, but having said that, to have played under these conditions wouldn't have been worthwhile. There was nothing to be gained."